Rain
by rikalynch
Summary: He could take the rain with open arms whenever it fell from the sky, each drop on his skin a perfect metaphor of what he wished to be, meaningless yet so significant. Pre Dean/Castiel, set 7 months after Swan Song.


_I don't own Supernatural or Breaking Benjamin, thank you very much._

_**Rain**_

_Take a photograph, it'll be the last_

_Not a dollar or a crowd would ever keep me here_

_I don't have a past, I just have a chance_

_Not a family, your honest plea remains the same_

Yes, it had been seven months and seven days since Dean had seen Castiel. Yes, he had counted. Yes, he was starting to lose sleep over it.

No, he was not gay. Dean Winchester was a man of many women, everyone knew that.

So why was Castiel's disappearance hurting him so much? Was it because he didn't say a proper goodbye? Was it because he had _feelings _for the angel… You know, as a _friend_? Or, perhaps, was it because he'd spent the past seven months and seven days sulking alone, drinking cheap whisky in one lousy motel after another?

_Rain, rain, go away_

_Come again another day_

_All the world is waiting for the sun_

He took a sip of whisky and stared out the dirty window at his car, thoughts trailing off to Sammy. _Should I have listened? Should I have gone to Lisa and Ben? _

At that moment, he caught something from the corner of his eye that only a hunter would really see. There was a glint of blue at the edge of the window. He stood up and jogged outside, staring into the distance, murmuring "What the _hell,_" under his breath as he stared. It was a slim blue light, similar to Lucifer's light on the night of his rising. "Castiel…" Dean muttered with blind hope. He scrambled into his car, the memories flowing from the day that his brother had jumped into the Pit, sacrificing himself for the safety of the Earth. He drove towards where he had seen the blast.

_Is it you I want, or just the notion of_

_A heart to wrap around so I can find my way around_

_Safe to say from here, we're getting close enough_

_We are never sad, cuz we are not allowed to be_

It was a warehouse with a large, steaming hole in the roof. Dean opened the door, gun in hand for safety, seeing nothing but burnt boxes and… He stopped dead in his tracks. There was a body lying on the ground, face up, as if it was staring at the sky. Its arms were crumpled over its chest and its left leg looked definitely broken. Dean couldn't tell if the body was a male or a female, until he took five steps closer. He saw the trench coat and pieced it together.

_Rain, rain, go away, come again another day_

_All the world is waiting for the sun_

_Rain, rain go away, come again another day_

_All the world is waiting for the sun_

"Castiel!" He yelled, running to him, dropping to his knees and shaking the man's shoulders. "Cas!" Castiel didn't reply. Dean put his hand over Cas's mouth, and sighed when he felt Cas's short and shaky breath against his palm. Castiel blinked a few times and looked at Dean but closed his eyes again.

"Cas, are you with me?"

"D'n?"

"Castiel…" Dean didn't care what it might have looked like, but he took Castiel in his arms. "It's really, really good to see you."

"D'n… Hurts…" Castiel coughed.

"Am I hurting you?" Dean frowned and set him lightly back on the ground, helping Cas into a more comfortable position. "I'm gonna call an ambulance," Dean muttered and pulled his phone out of his pocket.

"D'n…" Castiel muttered after Dean had called the hospital. "Hurts…"

"Shh, Castiel, I know…" Dean put a hand on Castiel's shoulder, rubbing it soothingly. "They'll be here soon to get you to the hospital."

"Dean don't leave me…" Castiel muttered, tears he could not control slipping down his cheeks. "I can't heal myself… Dean, I'm not… I'm not an angel," Castiel whispered.

Dean frowned. "What—You know, I think I'll just talk to you when you're better."

_To lie here under you, is all that I could ever do_

_To lie here under you is all_

_To lie here under you, is all that I could ever do_

_To lie here under you is all_

Castiel smiled and closed his eyes, shutting himself off from the rest of the world. Dean heard sirens wailing in the distance and picked Castiel up, bringing him outside of the warehouse so the medics didn't see all the burnt boxes. They arrived and he sadly handed Castiel to them. He rode in the back of the ambulance, rubbing Castiel's hand for reassurance. He would deny it if you asked him, but he whispered, _stay strong, Castiel, I love you. _

At that exact moment, Castiel seemed to smile, lips parting slightly. He looked over to Dean with sincerity in his eyes and whispered, _I love you too. _

Dean smiled and looked upwards, silently thanking whoever may be listening that Castiel was okay, his heart wrapping around the moment where Castiel hoarsely whispered the words he'd wanted to hear since day one.

His thoughts flickered to Sam, but he sighed sadly and ignored them for the time being, still whispering reassurances to Castiel as the ambulance took them to the hospital.

_Rain, rain, go away, come again another day_

_All the world is waiting for the sun_

_Rain, rain go away, come again another day_

_All the world is waiting for the sun_

_All the world is waiting for the sun_

It wasn't perfect but he'd take whatever he could get. He could take the rain with open arms whenever it fell from the sky, each drop on his skin a perfect metaphor of what he wished to be, meaningless yet so significant. He'd take the sun, snow and wind as it came, each element of the earth reminding him of Sam, but he'd always allow Castiel to make him happy again, his nerdy angel friend.

And yes, he still cried for Sam. He still drank. He still lost sleep. But nobody's perfect, and Dean was definitely as far from it as you can get. He was satisfied.

But he knew that no matter how empty he was on the inside, he could always try again.

As Dean smiled and took Castiel's hand again, the ambulance pulled up to the hospital and they rushed Castiel out, breaking Dean's toughly fragile heart once again.

_All the world is waiting for the sun_


End file.
